Minus Dollars
Minus Dollars is the 9th part of Return to the Negaverse, taking place during the Newborn Era. It stars Nega-Sector $ and their investigation of the Separate Proprietors of Child Trafficking. "Minus Dollars" was first published on January 27, 2020. It is preceded by Nega-Mages. Summary Chapter -1$: Train Heist The Separate Proprietors of Child Trafficking were one of the worst organizations in the universe. They controlled several toy stores, candy shops, and other places for the purpose of luring and capturing children. Children sold for different prices based on race, ability, and Power Level, and they were always hunting for the rarest in each category. First, there was Honest Repooc, a Mobian raccoon with shiny white fur and an ugly frown. Fixit was a Xabmol, a catlike alien from Planet Sloon, accompanied by his robot henchman, Klunk (whom he purchased from an acquaintance in the Posiverse). Trombo-Ocarina were a sentient bear and bird duo from Ralava, and they often played a dreary theme song on their self-named instruments. Kaj and Retxad were a long-nosed human and his pet Ottsel from Planet Arim; Kaj was an expert swordsman, yet was rather dimwitted, so Retxad was the true leader of their little duo. Finally, there was Hsa Freum, a human from Planet Ékop, and a master Nomékop Tamer. The Bandit Van was in pursuit of a train belonging to Freum’s crew. “There it is, gang.” said Lorac Nosretsam, leader of the Minus Dollar Thieves. “According to ThiefNet, that train is full of Freum’s monstrous Nomékop. We’ll have to act now if we wanna save the children before they reach their destination.” “I’m ready when you are!” Acificap cheered, ropes ready. She wore a cowboy hat, patterned blue shirt, and ripped jeans with brown slip-on shoes. “Do you think we could try to secure a few Nomékop to study?” asked Ssiew Eenhcs. She had short white hair and a light-green sundress with thorn designs and green slip-on shoes. “That may not be a good idea.” Leic Spirithive replied with a sheepish smile. He had smooth, bluish-black hair, angel wings, and a white gown with sleeves that seemed too large for his skinny body. It left his hands barely exposed and ended at the knees of his bare legs. “I don’t think even you would be able to tame those beasts.” “Maybe you could turn them into butterflies with your magic sword thingy?” “Silly, you know I’m only allowed to use that on spirits! Besides, this job wouldn’t be nearly as fun if I could.” “Setting the van to autopilot.” Lorac announced. “Gang, prepare to board!” Acificap tossed a lasso to a peg under one of the train cars, holding it tightly as her three teammates clambered across. When Lorac’s would-be team signed up for Arctic Training, she made them master the same Thief Style techniques that she utilizes, and they proved excellent at the art. An outsider wouldn’t expect much from such shabby-looking kids, and it’s true they weren’t packed with power like some operatives, but if one failed to keep an eye on them, they would find them gone in the next second, along with their possessions. The kids crossed the rope and climbed along the underside of the train until they found a hatch to go in. Lorac peeped up, seeing they were behind a Blastoise (I’m not gonna alter the Pokémon names, that would be a nightmare). They slipped in the car quietly, their chi focused to be totally silent. Leic quietly cracked open the window, and they all slipped out and sidled along the side of the train. They crouched to slip under some windows to avoid detection from Pidgeys, who would immediately swoop out if they spotted intruders. They slipped in a vent on the next car, then clambered along the ceiling above sleeping Skitties. They made it to the outer platform of a prison car and peeked in the window: a muscular boy with blonde hair was chained by his wrists and legs while three Raichu were continuously zapping him. He had a ripped light-brown top, shorts, and baggy shoes. A Squirtle was watching either door. The group hid against one side as Ssiew used a vine to crack the door open. The curious Squirtle waddled up to check it. Ssiew swiftly bumped a vine against its head to chi-block the turtle, used two more vines to grab its legs and yank it out, and they shut the door before anyone noticed, and they chucked the Squirtle off the train. Ssiew stretched her vines around the train’s side to sidle across, reaching the other end and repeating the process for the other Squirtle. She rejoined her team as they snuck into the car. Leic happily presented three pairs of rubber gloves, each thief equipping them. They snuck up and swiftly chi-blocked the Raichu from behind. The vicious mice whipped around and tried to bite the thieves, relentless regardless of their element. However, now that the zapping had stopped, the prisoner boy used immense strength to rip his chains off, then bashed the Raichus’ heads in. “Phew! Man, my arms were about to fall off from stiffness! Thanks a ton, fellas! Name’s Hgielar.” “My, you’re quite a strong one!” Leic praised. “Damn straight. Only the strongest can survive on Ékop, how else did you all make it this far?” “We’re not on Ékop, we’re on Earth.” Lorac replied. “You mean we’re on a different planet?!” “It’s true.” Ssiew nodded. “We’re the Minus Dollar Thieves. ’Course, most people call us Nega-$ because that’s a mouthful.” “We heard a bunch of kidnapped children were on this train, so we’re here to kidnap them back.” Lorac followed. “Actually, I’m the only other person on this train besides the Nomékop and their Tamer in the engine room.” “All this security was just for you?” “Yeah. They really broke their backs to capture me. But if I’m on another planet, I guess it kind of worked out.” “Do you not want to go home?” Leic asked. “HELL no! If you’ve seen the monsters on this train, that’s basically my whole world! I’m getting off this train and finding somewhere else to crash!” “The Nomékop are quite vicious from what we’ve heard.” Ssiew said. “Some operatives even tried to conduct expeditions on their planet, and they never went well. Luckily, we barely had to fight any on this train thanks to Lorac’s training.” “Come to think of it,” began the leader, “I know this is out of the blue, but would you like to join our team? It would actually be nice to have a heavy hitter.” “You’ve got a point.” Leic replied. “Even though we specialize in stealth and thievery, muscle is a key factor in any operation!” “Well, get me offa this train and you got yourself a teammate!” “We’ll just go out the way we came in.” Lorac affirmed. “Uh, but you might have to get in this.” She held their Infi-Cube out. Once Hgielar was in the cube, the three snuck their way to the back of the train and crossed Acificap’s rope to return to their van. They drove away from the train before anyone could suspect. Hgielar came out of the cube, watching it fade in the distance. “See ya later, suckers! I’m chilling with my new buds now!” “Well, you have to go to training and get officially registered.” Lorac explained. “But I have a feeling you’ll pass. Welcome to the Bandit Van, Hgielar!” … Hgielar joined their team in the month of Hcram, and continued to work with them up to Rebmetpes in the same year. His strength proved invaluable in breaking into many villain hideouts and robbing their valuables. He quickly grew accustomed to life in the Bandit Van, thinking it as a life of luxury compared to Ékop. His only shortcomings were, because he was so strong and buff at -12 years old, he didn’t have the nimbleness to master Thief Style like his teammates. As Acificap was leisurely driving the Bandit Van over a canyon, the others were looking over some blueprints sent from ThiefNet. “The Separate Proprietors are having a rare get-together to hold a slavery auction.” Lorac revealed. “Did it say where it’s taking place?” Ssiew asked. “No. We may have to dig around some of their hideouts to find out.” “But look at this blueprint for their personal lounge.” Leic pointed. “There are six seats around this table. I thought there were only five Proprietors?” “A sixth seat…?” Lorac thought aloud. “Hey, has anyone else noticed?” Ssiew asked. “I mean, I never brought this up because I didn’t really think much on it, but… whenever we steal from the Proprietors, sometimes they mention the name ‘B-Rah.’” “It’s probably one of their customers.” Hgielar figured. “I thought that, too, but I feel like they mentioned that name more often than other customers’ names. And, well… do the Separate Proprietors even have a leader?” “Well, no.” Lorac replied. “They’re each their own leader. That’s why they’re ‘Separate’ Proprietors. I always imagined they kept in contact with each other and made plans to meet and stuff, just like our sectors do. …But I wonder… could the Proprietors have a secret, sixth member?” “If they did, wouldn’t the DNK have found out about them by now?” Hgielar asked. “I’m not sure. Either way, we definitely need to find out where this auction is being held. Maybe this ‘B-Rah’ will show up to it…” Chapter -¢2: The Canyon Race Heist As the Bandit Van parked near a river for rest, Acificap went to explore a nearby field with Hgielar. She found a nest of baby Basilisks, a series of holes from which the snakes peeped out. She happily whirled her lasso and tried to catch the snakes, but they kept sinking back in. Beyond them appeared to be the mother Basilisk, curled up in slumber. “Acificap, you’re really gonna piss them off…” Hgielar said worriedly. “No I won’t. Basilisks are perfectly harmless. Hehe, they love to play!” “Play with their prey before they bite them, you mean.” “Maybe in the Posiverse, but we don’t have a thing to worry about with these guys. Not every creature is like the Nomékop, Hgielar.” “Mmmh…” The taller boy sighed and glanced right. He raised a brow, seeing a unicorn galloping their way. It didn’t seem to be targeting them and only wanted to continue on its merry way. However, just the sound of the clops made Acificap spark into alert mode. The moment she saw the unicorn, “AAAAAH!” she cowered behind Hgielar, hiding in fear until the horse was far out of sight. “Uh, is there a problem, Acif? You know unicorns are harmless too, right? A lot more than normal horses.” “N-No they’re not! We had a unicorn on my parents’ farm! I tried to ride it when I was little, and it got mad and stepped all over me!” “HA HA ha ha! ’Guess you ain’t as good with magical creatures as you thought!” “It’s not funny, Hgielar! I was so scared! I don’t care what anyone else says, I’m never trusting a unicorn again!” “You’re gonna have a real bad time on our mission then.” “Why, where are we going again?” Lorac called everyone back to the van as they drove into a vast canyon. It was the Supmylo Canyon, the largest canyon Eceerg and probably the world. The canyon was home to a tribe of merpeople who learned to swim in land using mudbending. One of their favorite sports was horseback riding on the local unicorns. “Why didn’t you tell me unicorns were native to this area?!” Acificap shouted at Lorac. “Because I knew you wouldn’t have wanted to come here if you did!” “Forget it! I’m not taking part in this mission, I’m calling Moonbase to take me somewhere else!” “Would you relax, Acif?! Look, you can wait in the van for the time being, but I still need you here in case something happens. According to our intel, Supmylo is going to hold its annual children’s race on baby unicorns, but Trombo-Ocarina are planning to stage a kidnapping using their own imported unicorns. The race will take place across the canyon and go through a dark cave, where the unicorns’ horns will provide a light. Of course, no one outside will be able to see what’s happening in the cave, so that’s when Trombo plans to capture the children in a trap. Since the unicorns are imported, they’re probably trained to carry the children to that trap. Before the race begins, we need to scout the track and determine what route they plan to use. If we can, we need to determine a new route that’ll bring the children back to town. Ssiew will have to use her telepathy to redirect the unicorns on that route.” “Does that mean I’ll have to take part in the race?” “You wouldn’t be able to do that without drawing suspicion. Not only are you not a mermaid, but you’re a little above their age range. Instead, we’re going to shoot these micro transmitters into the ears of the imported unicorns. Ssiew will be wearing her own and be able to transmit her telepathy to the unicorns. We’ll also set up Nightvision cameras in the cave so we can monitor the path. The race will take place tomorrow, so let’s get started.” Lorac and Leic infiltrated the cave in question, already seeing guards with Nightvision goggles. The guards were Minjo, a race of colorful, humanoid birdlike creatures. The thieves snuck and climbed around the cave, setting up hidden cameras. A large truck was parked inside the cave, big enough to hold 10 unicorns and prepared to drive away once they were reloaded with the captives. Later that night, the unicorns were being led by the Minjo to the farm where the children would mount them for the race, sneaking out the original unicorns in the process. Ssiew was perched on a tall platform, slipping the micro transmitters in a straw, which she would shoot near the unicorns’ ears. The following morning, as the other operatives were preparing for the mission, Hgielar came to visit Acificap in the bunk room. “Hey, Acif. Still hiding from those spooky, scary unicorns??” “Quit teasing me! You’re afraid of Nomékop the same way!” “I’m not afraid of them, I just don’t like them. I punch them in their stupid faces. But unicorns ain’t nearly as bad as those monsters. I don’t get why you’re so afraid after only one bad experience.” “You just don’t get it. I mean, you were born strong, so it’s not like you know what it’s like to be afraid.” “I don’t know what it’s like?? I didn’t just get strong over night, you know! Most of my childhood was spent running! Climbing! Eventually, that wasn’t enough anymore, so I started punching and kicking, and believe me, it was REALLY painful at first! The only reason I survived was…” “Was…?” Acificap raised a brow at his pause. “Er, the point is, all you ever encountered was one bad unicorn. And you were only a kid! You’re way stronger now! Not like me, of course, but… Heck, what about that Under Army bullshit? You couldn’t have helped us fight all those monsters and still be afraid of unicorns.” “You just don’t get it, Hgielar! Just go away!” “Pfft, you know I’m right. Deny it all you want.” On that note, he walked away. The children’s race began as the unicorns galloped across the canyon. Ssiew monitored their progress with the cameras, and when they entered the cave, Ssiew began to use her telepathy, trying to tell the horses to deviate from the truck. “Hey, Mark, what does ‘deviate’ mean?” one of the unicorns asked in a gruff voice. “I think that voice is tellin’ us not to get on the truck.” “Why not? We got a job to do, don’t we?” “Someone’s tryin’ ta trick us, ya idiot! Don’t listen to it, get back on the truck!” “Whatever you say.” With that, the unicorns ignored Ssiew and galloped toward the truck. “It didn’t work!” Ssiew exclaimed. “Those unicorns can… talk?!” “Time for Plan B!” Lorac yelled. “Drive after them!” She manned the wheel and stomped the gas. The merpeople gasped as the van suddenly sped up the track and into the cave. They pursued the truck up the canyon, but upon realizing they were being followed, the unicorns poked their heads out of windows to shoot lasers. They hit the van’s wheels, causing them to slow down. “Time for a Hgielar-pult!” yelled the muscle member as he lifted and hurled Ssiew above the truck. “Hey, what’s going on?!” Acificap asked, coming out of the bedroom. “Go ask Ssiew!” Hgielar yelled, grabbing and throwing her without a warning. Acificap screamed as she landed on the truck with Ssiew. When the unicorns climbed up to attack them, the Rope Master cowered behind Ssiew, who tried to chi-block them with Vine Whips. “Man, I’m gonna kill that Hgielar!” “If you don’t help out, they’re gonna kill us!” Ssiew yelled. “This is exactly what I was afraid… of?” As Acificap observed the unicorns’ motions and demeanors, their rather dimwitted and agro expressions, she noticed something. “Wait… these aren’t normal unicorns.” “What do you mean?” “The way they’re acting is… different from the ones on my parents’ farm. Opposite… even. …Are these unicorns from the Posiverse?” “Hey, Mark, what’s a Posiverse?” asked one of them. “It’s the universe from which we originate, you Hay Brain!” “So, you were imported from the Posiverse?” Ssiew asked. “I didn’t think Trombo-Ocarina had connections there.” “Shows whatchu know! He has connections with our boss, B-” “DON’T SAY HIS NAME, idiot! Just kill these brats!” “Sorry, Mark!” The unicorns continued shooting the girls, a few hitting Ssiew as she fell to her knees. “Mark” charged and tried to stab her—Acificap leapt and threw her lasso with such force and precision that he was redirected into another unicorn. “Why don’t you stick those up your own arses?!” Acificap mounted Mark, who angrily tried to shake her off, but she remained firm on the beast and used her rope to steer him into the others. The unicorns suffered holes in their sides and fell off the truck. After Ssiew treated herself, she helped KO Mark. The two friends shared a smirk before heading to the roof of the driver’s seat. Seeing the Minjos down below, they swiftly slipped into the seat and KO’ed the creatures, stopping and parking the truck in place. The -$ Thieves would soon breach the truck’s cargo and attack the remaining Minjo holding the children captive. Before long, the adult merpeople caught up to them, having followed the Bandit Van. Once the children were discovered with the culprits, the Minjo were quickly arrested. Nega-$ had already driven off in victory. “So, are you ready to admit that I was right?” Hgielar asked. “Shut up, Hgielar, I still don’t appreciate your teasing!” “Sounds like a yeeees~” “Ugh…fine, you were right. Instead of hiding from my fear… I should just grab it by the reins and make it stab itself with its own horn. And I wasn’t about to let those jerks stab Ssiew.” “And I’m really thankful that you did.” Ssiew smiled. “Although… I hope you don’t really do the same for all unicorns. Those ones apparently came from the Posiverse. And it sounded like that one was about to mention ‘B-Rah.’” “Does that mean ‘B-Rah’ is someone in the Posiverse?” Lorac asked. “It wouldn’t hurt to ask our friends if they know anything.” Leic smiled. “All the same, I’m real proud of you, Acificap!” “Not a problem!” the latter beamed. “But from now on, tell me the truth about where we’re heading.” “Hehe, it’s a promise.” Lorac blushed. Chapter -3¥: The First Catch With the aid of Nerehc and Cheren, Nega-$ scheduled a meeting with their Positives and were flown to Posi-$’s luxurious treehouse. Carol was mildly repulsed by the sight of her barefooted clone, and Ciel seemed equally displeased with his angelic opposite for the same reason. “Wow, Ciel, your Negative is a Nimbi!” Pacifica beamed. “I’m not actually a Nimbi, I’m-” Ciel slapped a hand over Leic’s mouth and said, “Slandering my reputation with his awful attire, I need to have a word with him.” And he dragged Leic away in a hurry. Alas, things got a little tense when Raleigh’s Slurpuff waddled up to greet Hgielar. His instinctive reaction was to kick the sweet Pokémon away. “HEY! What the hell is your deal?!” shouted Raleigh. “Oh, right… they’re friendly in this universe, aren’t they?” Hgielar remembered awkwardly. “What kind of sick person are you?! You just attack any innocent animal in sight?!” “I said I was sorry! I’m just not used to seeing a… friendly Nomékop.” “Hmph.” Raleigh lifted his childhood Pokémon in a comforting way. “How do I know the Nomékop are even evil? For all I know, you were beating them up first and that’s why they hate you.” “Hey, you don’t know a damn thing about Planet Ékop! If you think you can tame those monsters the same way you tamed those, then why don’t you fly on up there and try!” “You know, I think I will. No matter what universe it is, I don’t see any rational reason to kill or eat Pokémon!” “Fine then! Let’s go up to your planet and find a mirror.” “Hold on, hold on!” Lorac yelled. “We only came here to research a person called ‘B-Rah’! We’re going up to Ékop just to prove a point.” “I’ll just take him on my own.” Raleigh said. “Let’s go to my ship.” Raleigh drove his Negative up his home planet, landing outside Viridian City. Since they were there, Raleigh decided to bring the injured Slurpuff to the Pokémon Center, saying it was injured by a wild Pokémon. Afterwards, the two went to the bathroom and climbed into a mirror, entering the Negaverse. They appeared inside a hospital in Sinensis City. It was remarkably bigger than the Pokémon Center, though a lot of the other buildings were small, completely dwarfed by towering, surrounding walls. As they explored outside, they felt an aura of fear around the town. “See those walls?” Hgielar pointed. “Every city in the world has walls like that. All the good cities, anyway. Built specially to keep those demons out.” “I still wanna see them for myself.” Raleigh insisted. “Where’s the exit?” “Only licensed Nomékop Hunters are allowed to leave towns.” “HUNTERS?! You can’t mean to say your people kill Pokémon as a hobby?!” “Not so much a ‘hobby’ as it is a duty. I mean, if bugs were infesting your kitchen, wouldn’t you wanna exterminate them? The less that live, the less there are to worry about.” “You do realize that every Pokémon that dies in this world dies in our universe! And what if some of those Pokémon belong to Trainers?! You’re probably ruining tons of strong friendships!” “So, we’re supposed to just let those things kill us? I’m not allowed to protect my own life, and thus protect your life?” “Grrrr… just take me out there. There’s no way they can be that bad.” “You asked for it. Lucky for you, I have a license of my own.” Hgielar told the gate guards that he was escorting Raleigh to the next town, serving as a fair excuse to let him journey outside as well. They ventured into the forest: Caterpie shot web streams at them from the bushes, Hgielar dodging while Raleigh ended up being enwrapped. The bugs crawled up and tried to eat the prince before Hgielar squashed them and tore Raleigh free. Ledians blew Silver Wind, Butterfrees tried to poison them with their powder, but Hgielar smacked and smashed all the bugs as they kept racing through. They arrived at a cliffside area, where Geodudes were chucking boulders, Hgielar shattering them with Haki strength and throwing his own rocks at the beasts. An Onix emerged from the ground and tried to smash them with its head, but Hgielar blew it away with an uppercut. The Onix’s tail was grabbed by a Rhydon, who whirled it and slammed it back onto Hgielar. He grabbed Raleigh and dodged, running up to the Rhydon to punch its stomach. The Ground-type tried to dig its drill-horn at them, Hgielar dodging and leaping above to punch its head in the ground. As they ventured across a field, several Pidgey tried to gouge out Raleigh’s eyes, Magikarp bounced out of the river to bite his legs, and a Metapod (a freaking Metapod!) jumped around to try and trip and smash his head. No doubt, Raleigh might’ve been killed if Hgielar weren’t around. “Man… these Pokémon are relentless. We’re not bothering them at all, but they…” “You finally get it now?” Hgielar asked. “Huff…fine. If this is really what your whole world is like, I guess you had a right to defend yourself. But I can’t accept the idea of killing them! The fact is, every Pokémon that dies here dies in my world! Why can’t you at least… knock them out, tranquilize them or something?!” “Why the hell would we spare them when they don’t spare us? Hell, take a look over there!” Hgielar pointed a short distance away, where Murkrow were eating the remains of a killed hunter. The sight mortified Raleigh. “I dunno how strong that guy was, but he didn’t make it. Freshly killed, by the look of it. Even the walled cities aren’t totally safe. Sometimes, small Nomékop sneak their way through gaps, murder children in their sleeps. The guards need to keep a vigilante eye, looking for the smallest flaw in their defense, or else hundreds could die.” Raleigh faced the ground with a glum expression. He couldn’t deny the truth in Hgielar’s words. “No one should have to live like this… Humans and Pokémon are supposed to be friends. Killing each other like this… it’s awful.” “Galactic officials are in the process of evacuating people off this dangerous planet, but there’s a lot of procedures, involving money, finding them a new place to live… and of course, only the rich people have a chance of making it off alive. I was lucky enough to be kidnapped and winding up rescued by my new team. So… have you seen enough, or are you ready to go home?” Raleigh looked up at his taller opposite. “?!” With horror, he saw a giant, winged beast soaring down from the sky. “An…AN AERODACTYL?!” Hgielar whipped up and gasped, seeing the gray-skinned, dinosaur Nomékop. “I’ve never seen that one before!” “Even in my world, it’s one of the most dangerous ones you could encounter! It’s a carnivore that actually eats people! I can’t imagine what it’s like here…” Hgielar grit his teeth and readied his fist, ready to punch the reptile in the fangs. The Aerodactyl dropped down, talons-first… yet it was nowhere near their trajectory. Instead, the dino stomped a Tauros that was trying to charge and stab them with its horns. It lifted the Tauros in its talons and slammed it to the ground once more, KOing it. It then released the bull and hovered in the air. Hgielar approached the Tauros and checked its pulse. “It’s… still alive? Huh?” With much confusion, the Aerodactyl flew a mile away, landing beside a tree, where it began to eat something. The encounter had left him completely baffled: why would such a massive Nomékop not try to attack them at all?” Raleigh also noticed the Murkrow eating the dead hunter had also flown away in fear. “Hgielar… I think that Aerodactyl is harmless…” “That’s… impossible…” The two decided to approach the Aerodactyl cautiously. The “carnivore” appeared to be munching fruit from the tree. It looked down at the humans. “Hey, you! When you attacked that Tauros just now… were you trying to protect us?” “Aero.” It nodded. “But… why? Were you protecting us for a reason?” “Aero.” It shook ‘no.’ “So, do you always help people?” “Ro…Aerodactyl…” The beast seemed to rub a sore spot on its tail. “Oh…when you get too close to humans, they attack you. …I…I don’t believe it. How can something as big as you be harmless?! It just… doesn’t make sense!” “Ro…aero…” The beast narrowed its eyes with sadness. Raleigh formed a big smile. “Hgielar, you’re understanding it!” “What? No I’m not, I’m just basing this off his body language.” “That’s what I mean! No Trainer is truly a Trainer unless they try to communicate with Pokémon!” “Since when am I a Trainer?” “Since right now.” With that, Raleigh pulled out a Pokéball. “Hgielar… try to catch it.” “You mean… tame it?” “Tame, train, whatever. But I think you can do it. I feel like… this guy will listen to you. Just throw the ball and see.” “…Okay.” Hgielar took the ball and chucked it at the Aerodactyl. The giant dinosaur became light and compressed into the Pokéball. It shook and beeped on the ground for a few seconds… and came to a stop. “…You did it, Hgielar.” Raleigh announced proudly. “You captured your very first Pokémon!” Hgielar walked up and picked up the ball. Was that huge, scary-looking beast truly inside this little thing. “What… happens now?” “You let it out and it listens to you. You use it to battle, to fly you around, or do other things. The point is, you have a new friend!” “…” Hgielar was very tempted to try it out. But such a thing might be dangerous in this world. “Let’s head back to your world.” They made it to the next town and used a mirror to return to the Posiverse. Once there, Hgielar released the Aerodactyl, and both Trainers rode it back to Viridian City. “Wow… riding on an actual Aerodactyl!” Raleigh laughed with amazement. “I never would’ve imagined!” “Yeah, same here…” The very idea of riding on a tame Nomékop was unusual indeed. But what was also unusual was how beautiful Raleigh’s world looked from this view. He saw Trainers traveling the valley below with their own Pokémon. A warm light bathed this world, where both races lived in harmony. Some kids were pointing up at them, mouths agape. They never thought an Aerodactyl would be flying around in this region. “…Our world might never know peace, Raleigh… but at least I rescued this big guy from it.” “Yeah… you take good care of him, Hgielar.” “I will.” Meanwhile, at Sector $, Carol was doing research on her laptop with Lorac sitting across from her. “I just can’t find anything relating to any ‘B-Rah.’ I can’t find them on the Internet, or the KND files… The closest I could think of would be The Brain, the old Brotherhood leader. It wouldn’t surprise me that the Brotherhood of Evil were involved with the child trafficking operations. We’ll contact Cheren and see if anyone can investigate them.” “I guess that’s the best we can do at the moment.” Lorac figured. “Hey, guys! We’re back!” Raleigh called, he and Hgielar entering the living room. “Check THIS out!” Hgielar threw his Pokéball, which exploded into the Aerodactyl. “AEROOOOOOO!” “AAAAAAAHHHH!” The kids panicked, not wanting to be eaten by the real-life pterodactyl. “Ro…aero…” The beast blushed. Chapter -₽4: Aero Heist After returning to the Negaverse, the Nega-$ Thieves drove their van to a forest, where Hgielar released Aerodactyl to feast on some of the fruit trees. “It’s a little weird that a band of child thieves has a pterodactyl for an animal sidekick.” Lorac commented. “I mean… we can’t just drive around with him flying with us, he’ll totally give us away. And I get that he can’t stay cooped in the Pokéball all the time…” “Still, this is really amazing!” Ssiew beamed. “I finally have a chance to communicate with a Nomékop!” She happily approached the beast and focused her telepathy. Hello… Mr. Aerodactyl? Can you hear my voice? “Ro…what? Is someone talking to me?” asked the dinosaur in its scrawky voice. “Wow, I can actually hear him! It’s me! I’m talking to you!” “Ro…so, you’re the one. I never knew a human who could speak to us.” “I never knew a Nomékop that was friendly.” Hgielar said after Ssiew translated the beast. “Yes, it’s a cruel world where we’re from… When I was younger, my parents told me of an age where Nomékop and humans lived in peace. We don’t know what caused all that to change… maybe something in the ecosystem or what-have-you. But I, for one, never thought humans were appetizing. Never wanted to taste one. Especially if I would have to devolve to their barbaric nature.” “Haha, it’s funny because you’re a dinosaur!” Leic laughed. “But there’s something very strange about you, Hgielar. For some reason, I feel the need to follow you.” “That’s probably an effect of the Pokéball. Raleigh told me that any ‘Pokémon’ who submits to the Pokéball becomes loyal to the Trainer. But I wonder… was it a little too sudden, taking you from your home? Do you want to go back?” “As long as I got food and no monsters to deal with, I don’t mind. And if anyone’s bothering you, I’ll give them a tail-whoopin’.” “You’d really be handy to have in the right situation.” Lorac said. “But you’d have a hard time passing as a sneaky thief. Why don’t we take him to the Peace Farm?” “Excellent idea!” Ssiew cheered. “But can we please ride him there?” “One of us has to drive the van.” Acificap reminded. “But you guys have fun.” Hgielar, Leic, and Ssiew rode the Aerodactyl’s back, following the Bandit Van from high in the sky. They flew to the Nosretsam Vault, where Aerodactyl landed and returned to the Pokéball before they made the drive up. They followed the vault’s complex labyrinth to a secret, outdoor area on the side of the mountain. Hgielar released Aerodactyl: they were at a vast farm with diverse habitats and all kinds of animals. “These are all the animals we’ve rescued from poachers.” Ssiew explained. “These animals are peaceful and live off fruits and vegetables. There’s also a magic spell around the farm that prevents outsiders from seeing it; the only way in is through the vault.” “The spell was put in place by one of my ancestors’ descendants.” Lorac mentioned. “Some Nosretsams liked to rescue animals, too.” Aerodactyl approached a nest of snakes that were eating carrots. The snakes looked up at the avian skeptically. “…” Aerodactyl slowly bent down and took one of the carrots in his teeth. “The animals will need a while to warm up to you.” Ssiew said. “Some of them were rescued from dangerous predators. These snakes, for instance, we saved from a pack of raging rabbits.” “Rabbits have an unhealthy addiction to carrots.” Acificap followed. “All that sugar turns them into monsters. Renraw Sisters even invented a cartoon called Rodent Rabbit that tried to teach people that carrots were bad for them. It didn’t really sell very well…” “So, do you think you’ll be happy here?” Leic asked. “It is quite a nice place.” Aerodactyl answered. “Yes… I think I’ll like it here. But are you sure you lot won’t need me?” “I’ll craft a Magic Whistle that’ll open a portal above your location to warp you to us.” Acificap offered. “It’ll be able to work no matter where we are… Though, I guess we should be mindful of where we use it.” “And after we do, I think I know a good first mission for our new friend.” Ssiew said. “A first mission?” Lorac asked. “You know about the poaching operations that Moebius commits, right? They capture animals from all over the universe and try to implant them with brain cells so they can match the Moebians’ intelligence.” “I heard about that.” Leic replied sadly. “In fact, according to old DNK files, the planet used to be ruled by Scourge the Hedgehog, and he used to be one of the Separate Proprietors.” “Oh!” Hgielar gasped. “Maybe Scourge is ‘B-Rah’!” “I mentioned Scourge to my Positive, actually.” Lorac replied. “She looked up the KND files and found that Scourge was killed by his own Positive, Sonic, when he invaded the Posiverse. Of course, Sonic died as well. It was about -15 years ago.” “Then maybe Scourge was resurrected like Leic.” “Look, we can talk about this later.” Ssiew said impatiently. “But yes, Scourge was certainly involved with the poaching operations back in the day, but they’re still going on. I say we invade one of their bases and save some animals.” “Sounds good to me. You up for it, Aero?” Hgielar asked. “I’ll give it my all, boss!” With Nerehc’s help, they got connected with the Moebian DNK and learned of a poaching operation taking place on Steady Island. The Steadies were a breed of chubby, flightless birds that were common targets to the poachers. Nega-$ made the flight to Moebius after being handed the shipping routes for the captured Steadies. They would be captured in crates and taken aboard a ship to the main land, where they would then be loaded onto trucks. There were three different trucks driving together in the dead of night, until a certain point where they would divide on a three-way road to different destinations. Acificap had used the newly-crafted “Aero Whistle” to summon their new friend onto the planet. After the successful test, they rode on his back in the sky above the trucks, his gray body hidden against the dark sky. Ssiew dropped onto the roof of one truck, Leic on the second, and Acificap on the third. They climbed down the front of the cargo crates and slipped into small windows to get inside. There were guards walking around the caged Steadies, which the thieves quietly KO’ed. When the trucks divided on the separate roads, the thieves opened the cages, then opened the backs of the trucks, one at a time. Aerodactyl would hold a large satchel in his talons, flying behind each truck as the Steadies fell off and into it. Each thief would jump off once they were done, the trucks driving away as the drivers were blissfully unaware. They all mounted Aerodactyl and carried the Steadies back to their ships. “Well, gang, I say that’s a mission accomp-” “AEROOOO!” Aerodactyl was struck in the belly by a cannonball, which glued to the beast, causing him to plummet to the surface. The thieves screamed and braced for the crash-landing, the Steadies rolling out of the sack. They felt shaking and looked with terror as a giant, red-eyed robot marched through the forest, a catlike alien on its shoulder. “Well, Fixit, I thought I had sensed a ship land in this vicinity.” said the robot. “Indeed. Might you be the same children that have been foiling my colleagues’ operations?” asked Fixit. He wore light-blue goggles and a black suit with light-blue cybernetic lines. “You’re Fixit and Klunk!” Lorac recognized. “You were behind this?!” “Simply carrying on the work of our late friend, Scourge. I almost had a hunch this would happen and I’m glad I was right. Klunk, fix them.” The robot quickly shot metal bars from his palms, the thieves trying to evade, but Acificap and Hgielar were hit by the bars. The heavy objects weighed them to the ground, even though nothing seemed to really be attaching them to the objects. “What are these, magnets?!” Hgielar asked. “By eating the Fix-Fix Fruit, I gained the ability to ‘fix’ targets onto each other. The fixing only activates when I will it, so Klunk can freely shoot weights onto my desired targets. You’ll have a hard time fighting when I stick you all together.” He jumped down and ran for Lorac, while Klunk went for Leic, both fighting and catching either thief as Fixit attached Lorac’s feet to Leic’s head. Lorac hung upside-down from her friend, unable to detach herself as she weighed them both down. Ssiew whipped vines at Fixit, but he grabbed and fixed the vines to the ground. He dodged up to Ssiew and caught her other vines, fixing them around her head before knocking her down. Hgielar was strong enough to tear off his weight, engaging Klunk in a fist fight, but failed to dodge a punch when Fixit fixed his shoes to the ground. Aerodactyl whacked Fixit away with his tail. Hgielar ditched his shoes and ran to pry the cannonball off Aero’s belly. He then helped Acificap as Ssiew telepathically ordered the Steadies to hurry to the ship. Klunk grabbed Hgielar in his fist, which became fixed to the superhuman. Aerodactyl chomped Klunk’s head in his teeth, while Ssiew used Razor Leaf to try and cut the arm off. Fixit ran to Ssiew, but Acificap yanked him over with a rope. He escaped the rope and tried to fix it to the ground, but Acificap leapt to and chi-blocked the Xabmol, preventing him from using the power. Hgielar forced the robot hand off and punched Fixit away. “Hey, more trucks are coming!” Aerodactyl yelled. “Let’s get out of here!” Hgielar nodded and returned him to the Pokéball. With all the Steadies onboard, they boarded their ship and took flight, the enemy vehicles trying to shoot them down. The thieves escaped the planet and returned to the Nosretsam Vault, where the Steadies were free to join the other animals. “Sigh…that mission got a bit yucky, but we survived.” Lorac sighed with relief. “I didn’t expect one of the Proprietors to be waiting in ambush.” “And they took over Scourge’s old poaching operations…” Ssiew thought back. “It might be even harder to find out where they’re holding that auction.” “But we still need to try. The auction’s going to be held in two weeks. We have to sneak into their bases and try to gather intel.” “Hey, guys… do you think Scourge might’ve known who ‘B-Rah’ is while he was alive?” “Uhh…even if he did, Scourge is dead now? What would it matter?” Acificap asked confusedly. “But if Scourge is dead, I wonder if he would be in the Underworld?” Leic asked. “If I ask the Spirit KND, they might let me go down and see him!” “Wouldn’t that be kind of breaking your code of ‘doing it the mortal way’?” Ssiew asked. “I could at least make sure Scourge isn’t doing anything illegal! I’ll fly down there and be right back!” Chapter -5£: A Heavenly Meal Leic returned to the Spirit World and was informed that Scourge the Hedgehog was in Underworld Prison. Using his Thief Style, the young angel snuck his way into the prison, making it down to Level 3: Starvation Hell. Leic located Scourge’s cell on a high platform: the green hedgehog’s soul appeared dry and shriveled like a mummy. “Hello! Is your name Scourge?” Leic asked sweetly. “Bluhhhh…great. An angel. This better not be some kind of therapy.” “No, I’m not here for that. I just wanted to ask you a question about the Separate Proprietors of Child Trafficking.” “Oh, yeah… those were the days. The days when I had it all…” “Do you know of a person called ‘B-Rah’?” “B…Rah? Is he still around?” “So, you DO know of him!” “Hrn hrn huh… then it sounds like operations are still running smoothly.” “Who is B-Rah? Please, tell me.” “Figure it out for yourself. But if he’s still around, and you goody no-shoes haven’t caught him, yet… it’s probably too late by now. I sincerely hope… our enemies fall!” “Hmmm…well, it was nice talking to you! Here, have a chocolate!” He tossed a candybar into the cell before sneaking away. “Bleh…I hate chocolate…” … “LEIC! SPEAK TO ME!” cried Hgielar, shaking the body of his unconscious friend. “Ssiew, get one of your Soreaways! Do something!” “Hgielar, calm down!” Ssiew shouted. “His Gigai is just empty, he went to the Spirit World, remember?” Leic’s soul re-entered the Gigai and said, “I appreciate your concern, Hgielar!” “YIPE!” Hgielar dropped him. “Geez, don’t scare me like that!” “So, what did you find out?” Ssiew asked. “Well, I met Scourge. He seemed happy that B-Rah was still around, but because of that, he wouldn’t share much info. But he did say that, if we haven’t caught him by now, it would be ‘too late.’” “That’s as ominous as they come.” The telepath shrugged. “Anyway, right now, we’re in a parking lot under Twisty Town. Supposedly, Kaj and Retxad are staying at the hotel up the mountain, so Acificap and Lorac went ahead to investigate them. Now that you’re awake, I’m going to join them. See you later.” Ssiew left the van. “Well, perhaps I’ll enjoy myself a nice walk around town!” Leic said, marching out of the van in bright spirits. “Somehow, the blood in my Gigai is rushing! Like it wasn’t even laying still at all!” “Ehhh…” Hgielar blushed awkwardly. Twisty Town was built around and up a winding mountain. Children loved to have races up or down the mountain, and the views were great, no matter the angle. Leic saw an ice cream vendor, where a younger boy wanted to buy a Twisty Ice Cream. Unfortunately, he just discovered a hole in his pocket, and that his money was gone. Seeing his distraught expression, Leic approached and gave him some money to buy an ice cream. He saw a boy trying to reach for his kite, which got stuck on a horizontal tree hanging over the cliff. Leic easily balanced across that tree, got the kite, and brought it back. As Leic continued walking, “Yow!” his sensitive sole stepped on something small and sharp. He found that it was a ring with small pearls. After a bit of searching, he found an older man talking to a woman, but trying to find something in his pocket. Leic approached and held up the ring in his hands. “I may have squished it a bit, but I still think it’s pretty!” On a streak with his good deeds, he didn’t forget to do some for his teammates. He visited the market and bought produce, ordered a burger at a restaurant for Hgielar, and he decided to buy a chocolate bar for himself, feeling he deserved a reward. “Hey, Hgielar!” Leic greeted after he got home. “I brought you a snack!” “Oh, thanks, Leic.” Hgielar unwrapped the burger and began eating. “The others reported, they said the operation’s going good.” “Nice! I better get cooking, they deserve it for all their hard work.” Leic turned on the cooking pot and began to mince the vegetables. “Hey, Leic… if you came from the Spirit World, why choose this sector?” “Why not? I empathize with children in poverty. My family was poor, too. My brother and I had to steal to make a living. But one day, we stole from a really mean noble. He followed us home and had his men kill our parents.” “That’s horrible…” “Yeah. I was able to escape with my brother, and we ended up on the run. In the process, my brother caught a terrible disease and he died, too. I began to wonder what we all did to deserve this… I mean, I know we were stealing, but we didn’t have any other choice. And after I was left all alone, stealing was all I was good at. I began to wonder how I could turn my stealing into something good. Then, I decided… I would no longer steal for myself. I would steal for other people! I would find other poor children and steal things that they wanted. I barely even let myself eat. I got better at the art over the months, but then it began to snow really hard one day. I hadn’t had enough to eat, so I froze to death in the end…” “And then you became a ghost, right?” “Yep. For about -200 years before the incident with Aluben happened. But I didn’t let that stop me! As a ghost, I began to fly around and look for other sad or troubled people. I tried to encourage them or tell them where to find things that they lost. They couldn’t hear me directly, but the idea still came to them eventually. There was only so much I could do as a ghost, but I managed. I had nothing better to do in the afterlife, so I may as well do good! Plus, when I eventually got to the Spirit World, I was approached by an Angel named Ash Landers. He said he had been watching over my good deeds and gave me my own pair of wings. I was an official ‘Guardian Angel’!” “You’re as pure as they come, Leic. Got me beat by a long shot.” Hgielar finished his burger in one more bite. “I didn’t mean to make you feel bad…” “No, you didn’t. If I could make one complaint though, you should’ve tried harder to survive. If you were so good at stealing, give yourself a decent meal. Steal better food for yourself. Hah, no wonder you’re so damn skinny!” “I suppose you have a point. But it’s because I died like this that I’m able to serve you guys! I’m small and nimble enough to steal like a true Master Thief.” “Hmmm…” Before Hgielar could comment, the van door opened. “We’re back.” Lorac announced, she, Ssiew, and Acificap walking in. “The only thing Kaj and Retxad seemed to take was a large carrot cake.” Ssiew explained. “Nothing else was suspicious, but I was able to attach a tracking device to their car. We just need to keep an eye on it…” “In the meantime, I made stir fry for everyone!” Leic announced. “It’s almost ready, so empty those bellies of yours!” The team sat around the small, round dining table and ate their serving. The only exception was Leic, who only smiled at watching his friends enjoy his food. “…You know what, Leic needs to eat something, too!” Hgielar yelled. “It’s okay. I ate a few of the spare carrots!” “That ain’t enough! Seriously, how much does this kid eat in a day?! I’ve been in this team for half a year and I barely see him eat scraps!” “Well, when chocolate’s in the question, he can’t help himself by wolf it down.” Ssiew said. “I never found that very healthy. But since he’s a spirit, I felt like it didn’t really matter.” “My Gigai is designed to function like a normal human body, metabolism and all.” Leic said. “But all the same, I eat just enough to function. After all, it’s not like I’m allowed to hurt anyone beyond the gentle chi-block. There’s no real reason to overeat.” “I disagree.” Lorac said firmly. “With the auction coming up, we’re all gonna have to pull off this heist with full strength. We may end up fighting the Proprietors, especially if B-Rah shows up and turns out to have some crazy power. Listen, we’ve got a ton of money from thieving, so why don’t we fly up to Moonbase and fix Leic a good meal?” “You guys really don’t have to, honestly!” “Darling,” Acificap put an arm around him, “I like giving to people as much as the next thief, but sometimes, I love the feeling of stuffing my own face. Stole one of those hotcats at the hotel for a quick snack, and I haven’t regretted it since. And this little stick belly could do with some stuffing.” She poked his belly, earning a light giggle from the angel. “Hehehe…if you guys insist, I suppose I’ll try. But you don’t need to order too much.” Once at Moonbase, the thieves ordered a Mt. Sirloin (sirloin shaped like a mountain), a Multi-Fruit Pineapple, Cold Lava Soup, and a loaf of Pop-Butter Bread, where butter would pop into the mouth when eaten. Leic promised to alternate between the foods and eat equal servings of either… but after the first few bites of the sirloin, he couldn’t help himself. His knife and fork were working almost automatically, the meat flying into his mouth in rapid succession. He shifted between the soup, pineapple, and bread, his throat flowing like a river that had just been reopened. They could see the pure euphoria on his face as all four foods awakened his tastebuds. It was amazing that his little mouth could hold so much. “Oh?” When conscience finally returned to Leic, he realized only the base of the sirloin was left. The pineapple was eaten to its crown, a puddle of soup remained, as did a small chunk of bread. “Oops… I may have gone overboard.” The team shared a laugh. “Look at you eating like a wild Nomékop!” Hgielar teased. “You were so obsessed with giving people all your food, you never knew how it felt to really taste something!” “I’m sorry! Please, eat all the rest! It’s the least I could…” “Hey, we’re filled up on your stir fry.” Ssiew smiled. “This meal is for you, Leic, and I would think it’s a lot healthier than chocolate.” “But since you offered,” Acificap casually pulled the sirloin plate over and ate what was left. “Hey! You’re supposed to politely decline in this kind of scenario.” “Then I politely decline the cliché.” “Ha ha ha! You know, Ssiew, maybe I should do something nice for you in return.” Leic said. “M-Me?” “Yes! I was planning to save this for later, but I believe you deserve to know the beauty of chocolate~” Leic withdrew a long, yellow wrap from his gown pocket. It contained a chocolate snake. “Don’t worry, it’s not alive, and these purple lines aren’t poison. They’re berry-flavored! I heard it was delicious!” “No way! Chocolate is gross! It looks like molded mud or… s-something else that’s brown!” “Do you perhaps have intestinal problems like Lorac?” “DWAAAAAAH…!” Lorac sent Leic flying with a kick, causing the snake to drop on the table. “S-Sorry… I just hear it sometimes, and thought… everyone could hear it…” Leic groaned. “That’s it, we need an attention diverter.” Hgielar decided. “Ssiew, eat!” He shoved the choco-snake into her mouth without warning. “Ooooog…” Ssiew decided to submit and bit the head off, chewing it with a disgusted look. “Hmmmm…not bad, I guess.” “Ha ha ha ha!” Leic laughed, standing up and re-straightening his gown. “This meal has been very fun! I’m thankful to you all for treating me.” “You deserve to feed yourself as much as you feed us.” Lorac said. “And I want you on your ‘A’ game when we pull off this heist.” “Speaking of which… looks like the tracking device stopped moving.” Ssiew said, observing a monitor. “Should we head back down and investigate?” “Yeah. Meal time is over. Let’s look forward to another great meal when this is over!” “I’ll make sure to bring Ssiew a chocolate chicken next time!” “Please just cook your usual meal…” Ssiew sighed. At this time, the Separate Proprietors had parked their cars in a parking garage somewhere in Doowylloh. The garage led deep underground. Their henchmen began to set up tables in a dark auditorium, fix the stage curtains, and wipe off the dust. They were beginning to set up the table in their private dining room, a seat for each of them, as well as a sixth. They had their special mirror all ready. Category:Newborn Era Category:Negaverse Stories